Bicycle manufacturer Merida has announced that it will end its title sponsorship of the Bahrain Merida team in 2020.

Taiwanese Merida will continue to supply bicycles to the WorldTour team, but McLaren will become its secondary title sponsor; in 2020, the team will become the Bahrain McLaren Team.

Merida has been the title sponsor since Prince Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa launched the team in 2017. Prior to that, he was co-title sponsor of the Lampre-Merida team for four years.

The past three years have been very successful, especially with Vincenzo Nibali winning Il Lombardia and Milano-Sanremo and reaching the podium at the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España.

"We are very proud of the last three years and what we have achieved. Being part of the team from the very beginning and achieving two Grand Tour podiums in our first season has given us a great sense of accomplishment and motivation to continue our involvement with the Bahrain WorldTour team," said Andreas Rottler, Merida's sports marketing director. said.

"To remain one of the most successful teams in the peloton is both a great honor and a responsibility.

The Bahrain McLaren team, which includes new signing Mark Cavendish, will continue to race the same Merida bikes in 2020: the Scultura is a lightweight climbing bike, the Reacto an aero bike, and the Warp a time trial bike.

Merida has stated that it will continue to develop its products with McLaren's technical expertise.

"Merida's desire to leverage technology to further the development of our important equipment reflects our own aspirations, and their track record in our first three years of partnership demonstrates the quality of their approach. Together, I am confident that we can build an even brighter future," said John Alert, Managing Director of McLaren's "Pro Cycling" division.

Three years after its establishment, the Bahrain team will undergo major changes in 2020. McLaren's involvement has been strengthened and Rod Ellingworth, formerly of Team Ineos, has been appointed team manager. Nibali, a key team rider, has moved to Trek-Segafredo, and Mikel Landa has signed with Movistar as the main Grand Tour leader. Cavendish, who had strong ties to Ellingworth and to McLaren, signed a contract after years of suffering from illness at Dimension Data, with question marks over whether he would ever regain his former glory.